1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to refrigerator cabinets, and more particularly, to an outer shell or wrapper of a refrigerator cabinet having a multi-panel configuration which is adapted to be assembled using interlocking, vertical joints.
2. Description of the Related Art
Conventional refrigerator cabinets include an outer shell and an inner liner disposed within and spaced inwardly from the outer cabinet. A body of insulation is disposed between the outer shell and the liner. In certain refrigerator cabinets, it is desirable to use an outer shell of wrap-around sheet metal construction, as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 2,450,844 to Stuart. Other refrigerators use a three sided wrapper in combination with a rear panel to form the outer shell of a refrigerator, as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,580,852, to Smitte et al.
It is difficult to form refrigerator cabinet shells of the type shown in the '844 and '852 patents for large capacity built-in refrigerators having refrigeration components mounted on top of the cabinet. These types of wrap-around sheet metal shells are not only difficult to form in large sizes but they may not provide the cabinet strength necessary for a large built-in refrigerator. Accordingly, refrigerator cabinet shells may be fabricated from more than one panel. U.S. Pat. No. 4,714,304, for example, discloses a refrigerator cabinet including an outer shell formed from three separate panels which are either welded together or assembled using separate fasteners.
Unfortunately, refrigerator cabinet shells, such as shown in the '304 patent, are relatively costly to manufacture because of the difficulty in assembling the separate panels into a single shell structure. Welding large metallic members along a lengthy seam is relatively difficult and costly and can lead to quality problems. The use of separate fasteners, such as rivet or screws, is similarly difficult and costly.
In-plant processing is another drawback to the prior art refrigerator shell designs. Because of the difficulty in assembling multi-panel shell designs, these shells are typically fabricated into an assembled shells at a remote assembly location and then conveyed to the refrigerator assembly line. These assembled shells are large, bulky items requiring a great deal of work-in-process storage space. It would be a significant improvement to provide a shell which could be quickly assembled directly at the refrigerator assembly line from panels which could be more easily stored prior to assembly such that the work-in-process storage requirements could be reduced.
An additional concern in fabricating refrigerator cabinet shells is to provide an assembled shell which has sufficient integrity such that the interconnections between the separate panels of the shell prevent insulation from escaping when foam insulation is introduced into the cavity formed between the shell and liner. It would be an improvement in the art to provide a shell design which could be easily assembled with interlocking joints which formed adequately sealed interconnections between adjoining panels such that insulation did not escape during the cabinet foaming process.